Strip coiler



Oct. 4, 1966 TAKAO TSUKAMURA ETAL 3,276,715

I STRIP COILER Filed June 18, 1963 2 Sheets-Sheet l FIG.2

FIG. 4 (PRIOR ART) INVENTORS TAKAO TSUKAMURA BY KENGO YosHxoKA Oct. 4, 1966 TAKAO TSUKAMURA ETAL 3,276,715

STRIP COILER Filed June 18, 1965 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTORS TAKAO TSUKAMURA KENGO YOSHIOKA W/ WM United States Patent 3,276,715 STRIP COILER Talrao Tsukamura, Shibuya-ku, Tokyo, and Kengo Yoshioka, Tobata-lru, Kitakyushu, Japan, assignors to Yawata Iron 8; Steel Co., Ltd., Tokyo, Japan, a corporation of Japan Filed June 18, 1963, Ser. No. 288,710 Claims priority, application Japan, June 29, 1962, 37/ 27,068 10 Claims. (Cl. 242-72.1)

This invention generally relates to an improvement in a strip coiler in a rolling mill and more particularly to a coiler which assures a complete elimination of reel marks from the product in the strip mill.

An object of the invention is to provide an improved coiler for a strip mill roll to exclude all the possibilities of reel marks which, without such improved coiler, will surely result in the initial stage of coiling.

Another object of the invention is to provide an improved coiler which can eliminate reel marks by means contained within the coiler which is simple and easy to set.

Another object of the invention resides in providing an improved coiling drum the inside of which is almost similar to that of a conventional coiler in the method of coiling as well as in appearance, and which can insure perfect elimination of any coiling defect.

Another object of the'invention is to provide an improved coiler which can be applied to almost all types of strip mills, either hot or cold, and be useful for producing this strip, to say nothing of thick strip, without allowing a coiling defect such as reel marks to occur.

Other objects and novel features of this invention will appear from the following specification and the claims, and the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is a diagram, showing the arrangement of the coiler in a temper strip mill.

FIG. 2 is a plan view of a strip, illustrating a stepping defect or reel mark, caused by a conventional coiler.

FIG. 3 is a longitudinal section of the coiling drum of a conventional coiler.

FIG. 4 is an enlarged cross section taken on the line 4-4 in FIG. 3.

FIG. 5 is a cross-section of the drum of a coiler according to this invention.

FIG. 6 is a detailed cross section of the adjustable depression assembly shown by FIG. 5.

FIG. 7 is a perspective view of a part of the assembly of FIG. 6.

FIG. 8 is a perspective view of the wedge in FIG. 6.

FIG. 9 is a perspective view of a part of the drum segment.

For better understanding, the explanation of this invention Will be made hereinafter in comparison with a conventional similar drum.

Mills to produce strip and the like are gene-rally as illustrated in FIG. 1 which shows the deflector roll 2 and the coiling drum 4, following the mill. The coiler is also generally placed behind the tension drive bridle, or in the electric cleaning line or in the electroplating line and coil preparation line or in the galvanizing line.

It is reported that the conventional coiler inevitably causes defects in the form of a series of linear reel marks, covering entire width of the product, or a so called coiling defect 15, normal to the direction of rolling as illustrated in FIG. 2 to occur on the initial segment of the coiled product. Waste caused by such flaws represents, for the coiled product, a total of minor flaws for all stages of the rolling process, which are quite objectionable for commercial delivery. The present invention concerns an improved coiler which assures the complete elimination 3,276,715 Patented Oct. 4, 1966 of the said defect by virtue of a proposed improvement to be effected in the drum of the coiler, resulting in successful obtaining of a coil of strip of any gage, free from the said type of defect, this result being obtained by proper adjustment of a novel device contained in the drum of the coiler.

The drum of a conventional coiler is either a 2-segment type gap for the strip or a S-segment type without a clamping device, which is characterized by the disadvantage that the coiling flaw of a reel mark 15, as shown in FIG. 2 is caused on the coiled strip adjacent the clamping gap, because of the level surface at that section of the drum. FIG. 3 and FIG. 4 illustrate the construction of the clamping device of a known coiler of the conventional type which has the clamping gap 11.

Inasmuch as this invention is concerned with the improvement in the construction of part of the conventional coiler, an explanation will be given of the construction of the drum of a conventional coiler.

In FIG. 3 and FIG. 4, a movement of the segment-operating rod 5, which passes through the axial center of the reel shaft 4a, in the direction of arrow B, either hydraulically or by means of an electric motor, gives rise to the simultaneous sliding motion of the wedge 6 connected with the said rod 5, on the wedge shoe 9. The wedge shoe 9 is keyed to the drum segment by means of the retainer 7. Because both clamping drum segments 8a and 8', are pivoted on a shaft 29 inside the drum 4, with the spring 10, they can be swung inward around the shaft 29 after movement of the said wedge 6, by the force of the spring 10.

Inward swinging motion of both segments 8 and 8a in turn increases the opening of the clamping gap 11 to accept the leading end of the strip for coiling.

Action of the segments by movement of the segmentoperating rod 5 in the opposite direction to the arrow, after the leading end of the strip has been inserted into the opened gap 1'1, gives rise to an outward swing of both drum segments 8 and 8a which in turn causes the closing of the clamping gaps 11, which assures clamping of the end of the strip by means of projection 12. Starting the rotating motion of the coiling drum 4 in the direction of the arrow, shown in FIG. 4 for coiling of the strip, after grasping of the strip end in the gap 11, results in coiling up of the strip, which, on the second turn (layer), is stepped an amount equal to the strip thickness at the clamping gap 11, because the one turn of strip is laid on the drum 4 which has a true circular section. For this reason, the second turn 14 of the coiled strip, too, is bent to a very small radius, resulting in a coiling defect 15 as shown in FIG. 2. Such a defect 15 extends, as illustrated in FIG. 2 and represented by a linear step, the entire width of the strip in a direction normal to the direction of rolling, and affects seriously more than several turns of the coiled strip.

This invention provides a practical solution for prevention of the coiling defect 15 as described above, in such a manner that the formation of a stepped turn at the clamping gap 1E1, which is the sole cause of the said defect 15, is eliminated. This is accomplished by a novel improvement of a part of the construction of the coiling drum 4 which can be depressed in conformity with the thickness of the rolled strip.

In more detail, the present invention relates to a new method of construction of the coiling drum 4, by which a part of the round cylinder of the drum, corresponding to the first turn of the coiled strip, at the start of coiling, is depressed in conformity with the thickness of the strip, so that the strip outer surface will be flush with the round surface of the cylindrical drum. FIG. 5 illustrates the adjustable depressing assemblies 16 and 16', as incorporated in the coiling drum 4. In this illustration, the

end of the first turn of the coiled strip 17 is lowered into the cylindrical drum a distance equal to the thickness of the strip, resulting in successful elimination of a real mark at the clamping gap 1 1, which in turn assures an unmarked second turn of the coiled strip 18, which as a result can be wound tightly on the coiling drum. The adjustable depressing assemblies 16 and 16 mentioned above can be placed on clamping drum segments 8 and do, so that a depression which matches the thickness of a particular strip to be coiled can be achieved. Further details of the construction, according to this invention, are clearly shown in FIG. 6 through FIG. 9. In these illustrations, an adjustable gripper jaw or depression segment 19 is pivotally coupled with the clamping drum segment 8 through the pin 20, and several springs 2A1 are provided to withstand the centrifugal force applied to the adjustable depression segment 19, and segment moving means in the form of wedge slides 25 and 26 are employed to govern the depression of the said segment 19, corresponding to the gage of the coiled strip, and for the purpose, both slides are combined together through the right-hand screw 22, left hand screw 23 and the spline joint 24, which jointly serve to effect the symmetric displacement of both slides 25 and 26. Movement of these two slides 25 and 26 gives rise to the forced outward and spring induced inward movement of the adjustable depression segment 19 in accordance with the gage of the strip to be coiled. Movement of this segment 19 is by rotation on the pin 20, so that the bottom surfaces 25a and 26a of both slides 25 and 26, which induce the pivoting action, are rounded. To hold the slides having this configuration, the slide groove 27, in FIG. 9, is also made half-round. Square section end 28 of the right-hand screw shaft 22 is positioned in a space in the end plate 31 (FIG. 3), and a handle (not shown) can be readily applied to the end 28 from the side of the coiling drum 4, for setting the adjustable depression segment 19 by turning the square section end 28 with the applied handle as well as for securing the wedge slides 25 and 26, in order to prevent any motion thereof during the coiling of the strip. Both wedge slides 25 and 26 should have a mechanical strength at their surface suflicient to withstand all possible forces resulting from coiling compression.

Projection 1-2 in the clamping gap 11 for clamping the leading end of the strip to be coiled should preferably be hardened by, for example, using a welding technique to apply a hard alloy metal.

In some cases, the clamping drum segment itself may also take the place of the above stated adjustable depression assembly. But, in such a type of construction of the drum only one of the gaps to clamp the leading end of the strip can be used, and also roundness of the drum section is slightly irregular due to the claw 30 of the adjustable drum segment, resulting in a possible coiling defect caused by the said claw and some other disadvantages for successful strip coiling, but none the less, such a practice of improving the coiler is acceptable where it is diflicult to resort to the adjustable depression assembly with an adequate mechanical strength for anticipated service, because of limited size of the coiling drum.

The most effective application of this invention is for the coiling drum provided with a gap which clamps a leading end of the strip with comparatively large gage.

None the less, the present invention is widely appli cable also for coiling thinner strips of any type. Also in a coiling drum without the clamping gap, the basic usefulness of this invention is assured when the clamping position of the strip has been properly adjusted to conform to the position of the adjustable depression assembly. The adjustable depression assembly pursuant to this invention is characterized primarily by the applicability to a conventional and existing coiler without any modification and with extreme ease.

It is thought that the invention and its advantages will be understood from the foregoing description and it is apparent that various changes may be made in the parts of the apparatus without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention or sacrificing its material advantages, the form hereinbefore described and illustrated in the drawings being merely a preferred embodiment thereof.

What we claim is:

1. An expansible reel for coiling strip material of various thicknesses, including a reel shaft forming a portion of the periphery of the reel, a movable depression segment mounted on the reel shaft at the periphery of the reel and movable toward and away from the reel, said depression segment forming the remainder of the periphery of the reel when in its outermost position, and means positioned between said reel and said movable depression segment for moving said depression segment toward and away from said reel so that one edge of the depression segment can be positioned inside the periphery of the reel a distance substantially equal to the thickness of the material to be coiled.

2. An expansible reel for coiling strip material of various thicknesses, including a reel shaft forming a portion of the periphery of the reel, segment means pivotally mounted on said shaft forming a portion of the periphery of the reel, means on said shaft coupled to said segment means for moving said segment means to an expanded position and a collapsed posit-ion, a slot formed in the periphery of the reel between said segment means and a portion of said shaft, means for securing the end of strip material to be coiled on said reel, said securing means comprising fixed gripper jaw means secured to said shaft on one side of said slot, movable gripper jaw means pivotally mounted on said segment means and received in said slot and having a portion which extends between said shaft and said segment means that serves as a continuation of the periphery of the reel, and means between said movable gripper jaw means and said segment means for pivoting said movable jaw means on said segment means so that it can be pivoted inwardly an amount directly proportional to the thickness of the strip material to be held between the fixed and movable gripper jaw means.

3. An expansible reel as claimed in claim 2 in which said means for pivoting said movable gripper jaw means comprises a tension spring between said movable gripper jaw means and said shaft and wedge means engageable with complementary wedging surfaces on said movable gripper jaw means, said wedge means movable substantially parallel to the axis of said shaft.

4. An expansible reel as claimed in claim 3 in which said wedge means comprise two complementary wedges, said reel further comprising means for moving said wedges and constituting a threaded shaft having threads extending in one direction on one end thereof and threads extending in the opposite direction on the other end thereof, a wedge being mounted on each threaded portion.

5. An expan-sible reel as claimed in claim 4 in which said wedges have rounded surfaces on the radially inward portions thereof, and a complementary shaped groove in said shaft along which said rounded surfaces of said wedges slide, whereby said wedges can rotate around said rounded surfaces as said movable gripper aw means pivots.

6. An expansible reel for coiling strip material of various thicknesses including, a reel shaft forming a portion of the periphery of the reel, segment means pivotally mounted on said shaft forming a portion of the periphery of the reel, axially slidable operating means in operative engagement with said shaft and said segment means, said operating means arranged to place said segment means in the reel expanded position when moved axially in one direction and to place said segment means in the reel collapsed position when moved axially in the other direction, a slot formed at the periphery of the reel between segment means and a portion of said shaft, means for securing the end of strip material to be coiled on said reel, said securing means comprising fixed gripper jaw means secured to said shaft and received in said slot and extending inwardly relative to the periphery of said reel, movable gripper jaw means pivotally mounted on said segment means and received in said slot having a portion that extends between said shaft and said segment means that serves as a continuation of the periphery of the reel, and yield-able means interposed between said movable gripper jaw means and said segment means for urging said mov able jaw means toward said stationary jaw means, said movable jaw means being formed and arranged relative to said segment means and the periphery of said reel so that it pivots inw ardly by an amount directly proportional to the thickness of the strip material between the fixed and movable gripper jaw means.

7. An expansible reel as set forth in claim 6, in which said movable gripper jaw means is contoured on the outside surface thereof to facilitate formation of a cylindrical coil, irrespective of strip material thickness.

-8. An expansible reel as set forth in claim 6, including tooth means situated between the eoacting faces of said fixed and movable gripper jaw means.

9. An expansi-ble reel as set forth in claim 6, including tooth means situated on the gripping surface of said movable jaw means.

10. An expansible reel for coiling strip material of various thicknesses, including a reel shaft forming a portion of the periphery of the reel and having a strip engaging slot in the periphery thereof, a movable depression segment mounted on the periphery of the reel and movable toward and away from the reel, said depression segment forming the remainder of the periphery of the reel when in its outermost position and having strip gripping means on the end thereof forming one side of said slot, and means positoned between said reel and said movable depression segment for moving said depression segment toward and away from said reel so that the edge of the depression segment having said strip gripping means thereon can be positioned inside the periphery of the reel a distance substantially equal to the thickness of the material to be coiled.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 2/1932 Spence 24'272 1/1965 Jones 24272.1 

1. AN EXPANSIBLE REEL FOR COILING STRIP MATERIAL OF VARIOUS THICKNESS, INCLUDING A REEL SHAFT FORMING A PORTION OF THE PERIPHERY OF THE REEL, A MOVABLE DEPRESSION SEGMENT MOUNTED ON THE REEL SHAFT AT THE PERIPHERY OF THE REEL AND MOVABLE TOWARD AND AWAY FROM THE REEL, SAID DEPRESSION SEGMENT FORMING THE REMAINDER OF THE PERIPHERY OF THE REEL WHEN IN ITS OUTERMOST POSITION, AND MEANS POSITIONED BETWEEN SAID REEL AND SAID MOVABLE DEPRESSION SEGMENT FOR MOVING SAID DEPRESSION SEGMENT TOWARD AND AWAY FROM SAID REEL SO THAT ONE EDGE OF THE DEPRESSION SEGMENT CAN BE POSITIONED INSIDE THE PERIPHERY OF THE REEL A DISTANCE SUBSTANTIALLY EQUAL TO THE THICKNESS OF THE MATERIAL TO BE COILED. 